View picture gallery
The colleague from the Austria Press Agency (APA) is a conscientious journalist and traveled to Southampton especially to scrutinize the other opponents of the Austrian national football team in the group stage of the women’s EURO, Northern Ireland and Norway, in a direct duel. Norway won easily 4-1 – without overtime. That doesn’t exist at this stage of the tournament. Nevertheless, the editor spent what felt like an eternity in the orbit of St. Mary’s Stadium, which is the home of Austrian coach Ralph Hasenhüttl. involuntarily.
Because UEFA did not provide a parking ticket, the APA man had to find a parking space on his own initiative. That wasn’t cheap. He was charged 20 pounds – with the information that the plant would close at 11 p.m. Conversely, this means: don’t dawdle, write quickly. That also happened.
At 10:45 p.m., the raging reporter turned up at his rental car again, but the parking lot attendant had already finished his duty earlier. Pretty stupid when there’s no escape. So the poor colleague spent the night in the car and left his hostel in a hurry at 8 a.m. when the barriers went up. “I didn’t sleep that badly,” he says at lunchtime during ÖFB training at the team base camp “Pennyhill Park”. He actually looks pretty fit.
Had he not paid for his hotel it would have been a pretty cheap night at £20. In the fashionable “Pennyhill Park” the colleague would not have gotten very far. For that amount he should have smuggled half a pet into this luxurious spa hotel resort with superb 19th-century mansions. A whole costs £40 – that’s the extra charge.
Not only the APA man had his difficulties to travel from Manchester to Bagshot – about 45 kilometers southwest of Central London. Those who traveled to London by express train were best off. That works in about two hours. Anyone who chose the plane was in a waiting pattern on the ground for about the same amount of time and, after a one-hour flight, received a 45-minute delay because the lack of staff slowed down baggage delivery.
But now everyone has arrived and is ready for the Austrian women’s next game – on Monday at 6pm in Southampton against Norway. Don’t worry: the APA colleague has a parking ticket for this match. He is to begrudge him.
Source: Nachrichten
